Phillipsburg man convicted of murder in Tennessee waits for word on release

The fate of a Phillipsburg resident serving a life sentence in Tennessee for killing an Austin Peay State University football player now rests in the hands of that state's parole board.

Jack Elder, spokesman for the Tennessee Board of Probation and Parole, said two parole board members were present at David Frey's hearing today. Elder said both members voted to deny his release.

Four concurring votes out of seven are needed to make a final determination, Elder said. He said Frey's file will move among the remaining board members, a process that could take several weeks.

Frey, 48, is in prison for killing Rodney Wayne Long in 1982 in a remote portion of northern Tennessee. He was convicted of the crime a year later and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Frey's application for parole was met with stiff resistance from residents of Rainbow City, Ala., Long's hometown, and from those with whom he played college and high school football. The effort against Frey's parole was spearheaded by Long's mother, Barbara Mack.

Mack attended the hearing, which was held by teleconference, along with 44 other people who came to urge the parole board to keep Frey in prison. Mack said some of the people who attended were able to address the parole board and that she is confident they were able to plead their case.

"I'm really hoping we get the votes," Mack said shortly after the hearing.